Turner leads Sixers past Celtics in Boston

Boston Celtics' Courtney Lee, left loses control of the ball to Philadelphia 76ers' Jrue Holiday in the first quarter of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Friday, Nov. 9, 2012. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Sixers coach Doug Collins has used that term when referring to Turner, saying the third-year swingman needed a breakout game in which seemingly every shot goes in.

Friday’s was a game the Sixers had to have. Same for Turner.

Turner poured in 25 points to go with 11 rebounds, Jrue Holiday had 21 points and 14 assists and the Sixers outlasted the Boston Celtics, 106-100.

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So what turned it around for Turner?

“You’re seeing the ball go in. That definitely helps,” said Turner, who entered the game shooting 35 percent, or 12 percent off his career pace. “It’s just a big stage, big moment. Just wanted to help the team out the most.”

The Sixers, thanks to Turner and Holiday, have a chance for a 3-0 road trip. They face the Raptors in Toronto tonight.

Turner played more than 40 minutes, shooting 9-for-19 from the floor. He converted a pair of free throws inside the final two minutes of the game and, coupled with a steal and a fastbreak dunk in the last 60 seconds, put the game on ice.

Also in the fourth quarter, Turner on successive possessions clamped down Boston’s Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo – two entirely different players with varying styles and body types.

“Evan is his own worst enemy,” Collins said. “He puts so much pressure on himself to be perfect. And nothing’s perfect. I told him, ‘You do live television and it’s not perfect. You’re going to make some mistakes and, the next day, you’re going to read about the thing you said on television.’

“It’s what happens, so you play through your mistakes and you play to the next play. I was very happy with Evan.”

Nothing in this one was a sure thing, with Collins resorting to hand gestures with two minutes to go as if to say, ‘Calm down.’ At that stage, the Celtics had pulled to within, 100-94, and it seemed like the Sixers were cracking. They didn’t.

Heading to the Boston Garden, where their season ended a year ago in the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Sixers (3-2) wanted a good showing. Getting pushed around wasn’t in their plans.

For a Sixers team that entered the night ranked last in field-goal percentage, the warm and fuzzies were wide-spread at the Garden. It was almost as though the Sixers were surprising themselves with the shots they were making in the second quarter. Holiday hit a bucket, then opened his arms widely, looking infallible. Spencer Hawes slammed in a Holiday miss and grinned ear to ear. Turner hit a 3-pointer from the left corner and wore a look of amazement.

That fortune faded in the third quarter, with Rondo basically putting Boston on his back.

Rondo scored seven of the Celtics’ first nine points out of intermission, and an assist on a Paul Pierce jumper gave him a hand in every last one of them. Sixers coach Doug Collins called a timeout with his team’s lead cut into the single digits. The Celtics (2-3) flirted with trimming their deficit throughout the period, getting it down to seven, at 79-72, on a Jason Terry 3-pointer from the left wing.

“Last year we probably would’ve given the game away,” Turner said. “We were sticking together, especially with this crazy crowd. That’s the key – sticking together and outlasting them.”

Hand it to Turner – for as rough of a start to the season he’s endured, the third-year small forward turned in a solid final minute of the third quarter.

Turner, with the Garden crowd buzzing in his ear, dribbled into the lane to draw a foul and canned two free throws. That got the Sixers’ lead back to nine, at 81-72, until another Boston bucket. Then Turner did it again, playing the point and, after three dribbles, pulled up and made a mid-range jumper for an 83-74 lead heading into the fourth.

“Evan can score. We all know that,” Holiday said. “Sometimes he can be in a slump shooting. Evan’s a scorer, despite what anybody says. I know the last two years being with him, he’s capable of putting up big numbers and he’s going to prove it.”

Exiting the Garden and heading for Toronto Friday night, Turner had nothing left to prove.